About the Author – Mohammad Ali Amir-Moezzi

•Director of Studies at Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes

(Sorbonne)
• Chair of 'Exegesis and Theology' specializing in Shi'i Exegesis
•Joint Director of the Centre d'Etude des Religions du
Livre / Laboratoire d'Etudes sur les Monotheismes (CNRS-EPHE)

The Book Deals with these Questions:

What is Imami Shi‘ism in its earliest phase – a socio-political
doctrine? A theological-juridical doctrine? An esoteric doctrine?
•What is the “world vision” of Imamism?
•Who are the Shi‘i Imams – jurist theologians? Messianic
pretenders? Mystical philosophers? Holy men?

Methodology (from preface):

“the essential part of our methodological procedure consists in
separating out all the definitions and descriptions of the Imam given
by the imams themselves through their voluminous corpus of works.”

Reviewed by: “only the doctrine in its earliest formative phase will be considered
(that is, the period covered by the lives of the historical imams); our
Khalil Andani study will take place by using the imams' own words (ahadith,
(PhD Candidate, akhbar) pronounced theoretically between the middle of the
Harvard University) first/seventh century and the beginning of the fourth/ninth
century…Our work is thus founded on doctrinal and dogmatic
tradition, and not on the juridical tradition that differs little from
November 2015 the Sunni tradition;”
 Amir-Moezzi’s Thesis: Imamalogy
Thesis: “The true axis around which this world vision turns is the person of the Perfect
Guide (the imam) in his ontological dimension (in this acceptation, it will be written with a
capital "i": the Imam) as well as in his historical dimension (where "imam" will be written
with a lowercase "i"). The two dimensions are inextricably bound to one another. Imamism's
cosmology-cosmogony, its anthropology, its soteriology, and its eschatology all gravitate
around its Imamology.” (Preface)
Imam al-Sadiq Al-Barqi Al-Qummi Al-Kulayni Ibn Babawayh
(765) (897) (903) (941) (991)
Esoteric nonrational
Imamism

700 CE 800 CE 900 CE 1000 CE

Juridical-rational
Imamism
Zurara Hisham b. Fadl b. Abu Sahl Ibn Qiba Mufid Murtada Tusi
(767) Hakam Shadhan al-Nawbakhti al-Razi (1022) (1044) (1067)
(791) (873) (923) (931)

Secondary Thesis: “…two traditions of quite distinct nature and tenor within early
Imamism. The first, what we have called "the early nonrational esoteric tradition," is that
which prevailed up to the middle of the fourth/tenth century; it represents the “pre-kalamic"
and pre-philosophical phase of the doctrine, where language was still at what might be called
its "mythic" stage, basically impermeable to dialectical reasoning. The second tradition, the
"theological/juridical/rational tradition," a later development adopting a continually more
"logical" language, became predominant at about that time and has remained to the present
day. We feel that the sources belonging to the first tradition …more faithfully reflect the
original teachings of the Imams.” (p. 28)
 Amir-Moezzi’s Findings: Surveying the Sources
Imam al-Sadiq Al-Barqi Al-Qummi Al-Kulayni Ibn Babawayh
(765) (897) (903) (941) (991)
Esoteric nonrational
Imamism

700 CE 800 CE 900 CE 1000 CE

Juridical-rational
Imamism
Zurara Hisham b. Fadl b. Abu Sahl Ibn Qiba Mufid Murtada Tusi
(767) Hakam Shadhan al-Nawbakhti al-Razi (1022) (1044) (1067)
(791) (873) (923) (931)

•Amir-Moezzi traces doctrinal themes through the Imami literature:

Cosmogony: Imams’ Knowledge

1) pre-eternal light of the Imams 1) knowledge of the Unseen
2) initiation of spirits in world of shadows 2) knowledge of past-present-future
3) the pre-existential “pact” (mithaq) 3) knowledge of ta’wil
4) creation of spirits, hearts, bodies of Imams, 4) knowledge of all languages (human, animal)
their faithful, and the enemies 5) access to Column of Light
5) miraculous conception/birth of Imams’ 6) inspired by Holy Spirit, speech of angels
6) Imams’ clairvoyance to read people’s clay
 Example: What is ‘Aql in Imami Doctrine?
Cosmological: “God - may He be glorified and exalted - created ‘Aql first among the
spiritual entities (ruhaniyyin); He drew it forth from the right of His Throne,
making it proceed from His own Light.” (Imam Ja‘far in al-Kafi, Amir-Moezzi 8)
Spiritual: “The proof (hujjah) between God and His servants are the Prophets and
Imams and the proof (hujjah) between the servants and God is the ‘aql.”
(Imam Ja‘far in al-Kafi, Amir-Moezzi 144)
Soteriological: “The beginning of all things, their origin, their force and their
prosperity, is that ‘aql without which one can profit from nothing. God created it to
adorn His creatures, and as a light for them. It is through caql that the servants
recognize that God is their creator and that they themselves are created beings, that
He is the director and they are the directed, that He is the eternal and they are the
ephemeral... It is thanks to ‘aql that they can distinguish what is beautiful from what
is ugly, that they realize that darkness is in ignorance and that light is in
Knowledge.“ (Imam Ja‘far al-Sadiq in al-Kafi, Amir-Moezzi 145)
•After Ibn Babawayh (d. 991), the concept of ‘aql is “rationalized” and “humanized”:
•Shaykh al-Mufid (d. 1022) uses ‘aql in the sense of dialectical reasoning to confront
the Mu‘tazlites; he critiques Ibn Babawayh “in the name of reason”;
•Al-Sharif al-Murtada (d. 1044) uses ‘aql as a synonym for “reasoning” (istidlal)
along Mu‘tazilite lines; he censures al-Kulayni for “absurd” traditions.
 Example: Who are the Imams?
•God is absolutely transcendent, unknowable, beyond corporal qualities (space,
time, matter, place) and names [Imam Ja‘far says God’s Names are created].
•The Ontological Imam (Eternal Imam) is the first luminous creation cum
manifestation of God in the form of Light (nur), equivalent to the Cosmic ‘Aql:
“Muhammad and ‘Ali were one light before God two thousands years before
creation...” (Imam Ja‘far in Ibn Babawayh ‘Ilal al-Shara‘i, Amir-Moezzi, 160)
“I and ‘Ali were created from one light before the creation of the world.”
(Prophet Muhammad in Ibn Babawayh, ibid.)
•The historical imams are secondary creations from the Light of Muhammad-’Ali or
Cosmic ‘Aql (Ontological Imam):

“We were silhouettes of light revolving around the Throne of the all-Merciful, and
we taught Praise, the formula for Unicity, and Glorification to the angels.”
(Imam al-Husayn in Ibn Babawayh, ‘Ilal al-Shara‘i, Amir-Moezzi 35)

“God created [the bodies of] Muhammad and his family from the Clay of 'Illiyyin,
and he created their spirits and their hearts from a Clay located above the 'Illiyyin.
He created [the bodies] of our faithful as well as [those] of the prophets from a
Clay found beneath the 'Illiyyin, while he created their spirits and their hearts from
the Clay of the 'Illiyyin itself.” (Imam al-Baqir in Qummi, Basa’ir, Amir-Moezzi 166)
 Example: Who are the Imams?
•The Light of the Imams was transmitted from Adam to the historical Muhammad
and his descendants via a physical lineage and a spiritual lineage of Prophets.
•The Imams possess knowledge of the zahir and batin of the Qur’an as well as
occult sciences: only the Imams possess the complete authentic Qur’an.
•The Imams are inspired by supernatural sources – angels speak to them (they are
muhaddathun), the Holy Spirit (al-ruh al-quddus greater than all angels) guides
them, and a Column of Light appears before them to see whatever they wish.
•The historical Imams foretold that there would be 12 Imams and that the last would
be al-Mahdi who would go into occultation.
•The Mahdi upon his parousia brings a new Book/Sunnah and hidden knowledge.
•The historical Imams are the manifestations of the Ontological Imam, who is in turn
the primodial manifestation of God’s Names and Attributes:
“Without God, we would not be known, and without us, God would not be known...
God made us His Eye among his worshippers, His speaking Tongue among his
creatures, His Hand of kindness and mercy stretched out to his servants, His Face
by which one is led to Him, His Threshold that leads to Him, His Treasure in
heaven and on earth .... It is by our service that God is served. Without us, God
would not be worshipped.”
(Imam Ja‘far in al-Kafi and Ibn Babawayh, Amir-Moezzi 46)
 Critical Remarks on the Book
Strengths:
Method and purpose of study is very well laid out in the first section of the book;
Heavy use and quotations from primary sources often ignored or underplayed by
current scholarship; brings balance back to studies of Imami Shi‘ism;
Brings structural integrity to otherwise scattered doctrinal themes;
Calls for revisions to scholarly consensus on Shi‘i studies:
The “ghulat” vs. “moderate” narrative must be rethought;
Early Imami Shi‘ism needs to be viewed, above all, as an “esotericism” (as
Henry Corbin argues) and not merely as a legal-rational-juridical tradition.

Weaknesses:
Assumes that the earliest Twelver hadith books accurately reflect the historical
teachings of the Imams (requires a method for engaging hadith as history);
Not very convincing hypothesis as to why pre-Occultation hadith books lack
narrations which foretell the Twelve Imams: the Imams were performing taqiyya;
Crow’s Review: Moezzi privileges the esoteric themes in Imami hadith without due
attention to the exoteric-legal-kalam content;
Momen’s Review: did not use “techniques of Western academic scholarship.”
 Conclusions and Recommendations
•The Divine Guide in Early Shi‘ism is a game-changing book:
•It brings much needed balance to Shi‘i studies and one must conclude, at least,
that the “esoteric nonrational doctrine” formed a major current of early Imami Shi‘ism
alongside the “rationalist doctrines”;
•The Divine Guide is best read in conjunction with other works that take a historical-
sociological approach:
•Hossein Modarressi, Crisis and Consolidation
•Andrew Newman, The Formative Period in Twelver Shi ism
•Arzina N. Lalani, Early Shi‘i Thought
•Maria Masse Dakake, Charismatic Community
•Amir-Moezzi’s follow-up The Spirituality of Shi‘i Islam.
“Within Islamic Studies more generally, though, Amir-Moezzi’s work has been employed
to disassociate early Shi‘ism from the political debates of early Islam. The perception
(common in introductory works on Islam) of Shi‘ism as a primarily political movement,
which only later acquired theological sophistication or complexity, has been largely
supplanted by a more nuanced view of early Shi‘i thought, for which esotericism is given
greater emphasis. Whatever its criticisms within the field of Shi‘ite studies, Amir-Moezzi’s
presentation (given wider impact through a later English translation) has made a real
difference to the manner in which early Imami Shi‘ism is portrayed.”
- Robert Gleave, (Recent Research into the History of Early Shi‘ism’, History Compass 7/6
2009, 1598)